Friday, May 7, 2010

Stop reading this and go see Iron Man 2!

Just like the title says: Go see Iron Man 2. Right now! It's that good. 

Robert Downey Jr. (or RDJ as I like to call him) is back as the super charismatic, super genius, Tony Stark. In fact, every one except the original black guy is back. Replacing OG black is Don Cheadle, who does an awesome job as Rhodey. Scarlett Johansson should be in every movie and require a scene where she's in a bra. Jon Favreau does an wonderful job both in-front and behind the camera. Gwyneth Paltrow is adorable as the new CEO of Stark Enterprises.

The basic premise of the movie is pretty simple. Stark is getting old, the U.S. government wants his armor and he's getting some competition from Justin Hammer who is trying to build his own super armor. Also, there's a crazy Russian guy who is trying to kill Stark.

Sam Rockwell and Mickey Rourke play the "Bad Guys", and I say that with quotes because it's really hard to call them villains. Rockwell is so good in this flick, from his arrogance, to the cheesy little dance he does, he's incredible. Mickey Rourke is just as threatening with his electricity tinged whips, though I didn't see him as much as a threat as I did when Jeff Bridges was the antagonist.

Of course, like any other sequel, every thing is doubled. Two bad guys, two love interests, etc. Yet it avoids Spiderman's trappings that it had in its sequels. Every thing is bigger than the first, the fights are bigger and that's a good thing, a very good thing.

The visuals are amazing without being over done. Stark's computer, Jarvis, has been upgraded, and provides an outlet for Robert Downey Jr. do his crazy hand gestures that only he could pull off. Think Minority Report but in an actual 3D space. And Iron Man definitely has some some surprises up his metal sleeve. If anything, the suitcase armor scene alone is worth the price of admission, and the audience in our theatre went wild after Iron Man said, "Rhodey, get down!"

There's a ton of winks and nods to the other Marvel properties, I won't spoil them for you, just make sure to stick around after the credits. You almost get the sense that this -- and any other future Marvel movies -- is just a very expensive commercial for the upcoming Avengers movie, and there's plenty of Avengers talk in Iron Man, and I'll admit, made me giddy with fanboy nerdgasms.

So, bottom line, is Iron Man 2 as good as the first? Honestly, no. But, I think it's partly due to the fact that I had such low expectations for the first Iron Man, not being a fan of the comic.

Now, is Iron Man 2 the best comic book sequel ever? YES! I'd even say it's the best comic movie since its predecessor.

9/10 

 

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